Tate & Lyle woos Asia with R&D drive

Tate & Lyle has opened a new research and development centre in
Shanghai, China to help manufacturers develop food products that
are targeted to the preferences of Asian consumers.

Tate & Lyle's range of value-added ingredients include its
Splenda Sucralose sweetener, texturants like gums and starch, and
products intended to boost health and wellness, like Promitor
fibres, proteins, and prebiotics.
The company has previously offered its range of value-added
ingredients to food manufacturers - both multinational and Asian.
But with an R&D team that has a physical presence in the
region, it says these customers will have better access to its
range.
The team will be involved with developing prototypes of both Asian
and Western-style foods and beverages, to show off how its
ingredients work and how the products can be adapted to suit
specific tastes.
To begin with, Tate & Lyle will be focusing on bakery, dairy
and beverage applications.
A spokesperson for the company said analysis of the market
situation has shown a number of developments in Asia, with an
overall trend towards health and wellness.
"In China, we are seeing a strong impact of Western culture vs.
the traditional Chinese culture and food. The economic growth,
especially in cities such as Shanghai and Beijing, leads to a
faster-paced lifestyle and a greater role for convenience
foods." ​
There is increased interest in functional/fortified products,
especially in the beverage sector, with products like
ready-to-drink tea, fruit and vegetable juice and bottled water
figuring large, she added.
Of course, Asia covers a large area and there are significant
differences within the region.
For instance, Tate & Lyle says that in India there is more
interest in fibre and awareness of its digestive benefits; people
prefer smaller pack sizes; and the beverage sector shows an
increase in reduced sugar carbonated beverages.
In Japan, much innovation is happening in functional
beverages.
"While the older population is generally more interested in
traditional foods, younger people tend to consume more convenience
foods,"​ said the spokesperson. "Consumers also show an
increased awareness of the role diet plays for their
health."​
Mun Hay Tang, manager of technical service and applications said:
"At the same time we will learn more about Asian consumer
preferences and trends, and how our ingredients can help solve the
challenges our customers face in this market." ​
Catering to the Asian consumer has become a major target for food
manufacturers, as disposable income is on the rise.
Estimates from the International Monetary Fund put growth in
consumer spending in Asia (including Japan, as well as emerging
economies) at an average of 6.3 per cent a year in 2005 and
2006.
Tate & Lyle is not the first ingredients company looking to
make it easier for manufacturers to tap this potential. For
instance, flavour and fragrance firm Symrise announced in August
that it is effecting a big expansion of its regional Sensory and
Consumer Science Center in Singapore.
Moreover, Tate & Lyle opened a new production plant for Splenda
sucralose in Singapore in a bid to capitalise on the potential of
Asia's sweetener demand.
The site, which is part of an S$300m (€145m) investment by Tate and
Lyle, is expected to reach full capacity within 12 to 18
months to continue the group's global expansion plans.
At the same time, Tate & Lyle's new R&D centre in Lille,
France, is scheduled to open its doors in the next few months.
There will be coordination between the centre in France and the
centre in China.
"A​ll our R&D facilities work together to exchange
their applications expertise and thereby maximise the benefit for
our customers,"​ said the spokesperson.
It is also not clear how closely activities at the facility in
Singapore will be linked to those in Singapore.
The company has been increasingly focusing on its value-added
ingredients as it seeks to reduce reliance on its sugar activities,
in the light of EU sugar reform.
In full year 2007 Tate & Lyle reported total sales from
continuing operations of £4.07bn, and operating profit of
£373m.
"Growth this year has been driven substantially by our Food
& Industrial Ingredients businesses, which together achieved a
36 per cent increase in adjusted operating profit,"​ said
chairman Sir David Lees.
In 2006 it had set an ambitious target for the contribution of
value-added ingredients to overall operating profit to increase by
30 percent. In the event, it did not achieve this, but profits from
value-added products were 14 per cent higher than in 2006.
The company stood by its strategy to grow the value-added part of
its business.